Category: Dogs

Monday Musings ~ June 29, 2026

~ Tails Around the Ranch ~ 74 Comments

Here we are-it’s the last Monday of June which means we’re heading toward the back side of 2026. Where has the time gone this year? Our weekend was jammed with activities. First there was the Dog Fair on Saturday that was great fun for both the two and four legged. On Sunday Wilson and I hosted a birthday BBQ for the family which meant that the great granddaughter cutie pie helped blow out candles (repeatedly) for her Daddy and Grandpa who both had recent birthdays.

Halia

The woman with the pink hair below was with the event organizers, the rest of the group were some of the volunteers who helped man the both. Sweet Hadley is always a super chill and model pup.

Denver Dog Fair

We had loads of visitors stop by to meet the sheepdogs and generally chat with our rescue volunteers.

Denver Dog Fair
Young and old enjoy meeting our volunteer sheepdogs (I think this sweet boy was Ralph)
Denver Dog Fair
A fellow sheepdog owner and her family dropped by
Cutie pies of all types stopped by
Even non-sheepdogs swung by

Denver Dog Fair

Another dog rescue group located next to ours had a very cool photo booth and took photos of some of the volunteers and their dogs.

Denver Dog Fair Denver Dog Fair

It was a swell event on a very hot day (officially it was 97F/36.1C) with lots of visitors and dogs eager to get out of the heat.

And because it’s a Monday, we still want to share a smile. When I say there was lots of sniffing among the dogs who attended the fair, they might have benefitted with name tags like today’s smile to make the meet and greet a bit easier.

Monday smile

We hope everyone you meet today has a smile on their face. Have a wonderful Monday and try to stay as cool as you can.

Nature Friday ~ June 26, 2026

~ Tails Around the Ranch ~ 68 Comments

WilsonGreetings and salutations, everyone. Happy Friday. Wilson here…and as always, I’m joining those lovable pups from the  Adventures of the LLB Gang. Well hallelujah…we finally received some rain last night. Arvada officially received somewhere between 0.40″ and 1.41″ of rain, with the heaviest moisture occurring in the western foothills. In our neighborhood I think we received somewhere in the middle. It. was. beautiful. And comes at a good time since our temperatures are slated to be in the low to mid-90’sF next week. But like my Mum always says, we’ll take that moisture.

Wilson: Besides the news about receiving rain, Mum has a new critter obsession now. We’ve know about this critter appearing in our area because we’ve seen evidence of him but had never actually seen one in person. Well that’s history now. Meet our newest critter in the ‘Hood. He is unnamed as of now so I’m asking for your help in suggesting a name for him since Mum can’t decide. Let me just say she is over the moon giddy about running into him a couple of mornings since last week. She couldn’t capture any good photos since she didn’t have her big camera with her and whenever she did, we didn’t see him but she’s been researching about beavers nonstop. Can you imagine being replaced as the love of her life by…{gasp}…a…rodent??

Beaver
Photo taken from the canal bridge
Beaver
Hauling a branch back to his lodge

The Mum: You are not being replaced, let me reassure you. It’s just I’ve never seen a beaver before in real life and I certainly never expected to see one in the city. This is monumental so I’ve been trying to find out about this fella. Did you know that beavers are the second largest rodent (behind capybaras) in the world and weigh up to 110 lb (50 kg)? With their stout bodies, large heads and those famous chisel-like incisors, beavers have brown or gray fur, with hand-like front feet, webbed back feet. Their tails that are flat and scaly and are used as a rudder as well as a alarm system when they slap it on the surface of water. Beavers can be found in a number of freshwater habitats and typically eat tree bark, aquatic plants, grasses and sedges. They are considered a keystone species because their damn and lodge building activities create wetlands that are used by many other species.

Wilson: {with his paw against his forehead} I can’t believe I’m being replaced by a rodent. This is just humiliating…

The Mum: {interrupting} Let me assure you that you are not being replaced. But seeing one of these guys is pretty monumental. They’re nocturnal you know.

Wilson: Well we do practically take our morning walks in the dark so I guess that makes sense…

The Mum:  Oh for heaven’s sake…stop being so hyperbolic. We walk early to avoid the heat…seeing that beaver was a bonus-just like that day we ran into the coyote pup. Did you know their eyes, ears and nostrils are arranged so that they can remain above water while the rest of the body is submerged and their nostrils and ears have valves that close underwater? They also have a translucent third eye membrane that covers their eyes when they are submerged. Isn’t that cool?

Wilson: {harumph} Big deal. They can’t cuddle with you like I do.

The Mum: No, you’re right about that…for which I’m grateful. You’re still my favorite pet, so don’t worry. But I will always want to better capture that guy in a photo. You’re still my bestest floof.

Wilson: Well I guess I feel better about that declaration. Thank you for that. Now that you’ve pledged your undying love for a rodent, how about I share some other slices of nature we encountered this week?

The Mum: I did not pledge undying love for a rodent but I’d love to see what else you have today.

Wilson: Just to prove we do walk in the middle of the night at dawn, here’s a beautiful sunrise we encountered a couple of days ago.

Sunrise

The Mum: That was a pretty spectacular sunrise through the coyote habitat.

Wilson: Umm, meh…I’d have been happy sleeping in but whatever.

The Mum: Oh come on…you love the cool mornings as much as I do. What else do you have?

Wilson: You’re right, I do like the cool mornings because I know it’ll be hotter later. The wildflowers are lovely. With the blanket flower (Gaillardia) a kind of chamomile is blooming with them.

Wild flowers

The Mum: To show how hot and dry it’s been, look at this rye grass. Crispy-crunchy.

Grass

Wilson: I’ve noticed gladiolus are starting to bloom and there are some real beauties in the neighborhood adjacent to the golf course. Just look at these babies.

Gladiolas

The Mum: They really are pretty. I’ve always thought those “sword lilies” are quite showy and this house has a gorgeous selection. They do tend to flop over so I’ve never planted any in favor of other plants that stay upright without support like these gorgeous lilies.

Lilies

Wilson: Well that’s all I have this week. We hope you have a terrific weekend and don’t fry in the heat that is set to return. Mum is helping the rescue out tomorrow at the annual Denver Dog Fair. This is one of the best public events for dog rescues. They find homes for so many dogs and there are vendors selling everything you can imagine associated with owning a dog. I’ll be happily snoozing on the sofa (don’t tell Mum) while she’ll be dealing with crowds, parking and all the things I wouldn’t enjoy. What are your plans? What ever you do, we hope you can find some time to get out and enjoy what Nature shares with us. And don’t forget to suggest a name for the rodent. I was thinking of Theodore like that Leave It To Beaver kid or Norbert, a famous beaver who lived at the Detroit Zoo. What do you think? I have no doubt that if Mum has anything to do with it, she’ll be sharing more photos of he who is to be named. Sigh. Have a wonderful weekend!

Dog Fair

Nature

Live, love, bark! 🐾

Monday Musings ~ June 15, 2026

~ Tails Around the Ranch ~ 53 Comments

Greetings, peeps. We hope today’s morning smile doesn’t involve anyone to be unnecessarily dressed up…just a straight up delivery of your favorite wake up beverage. Happy Monday.

Monday smile

Make it a terrific Monday!

Live, love, bark! 🐾

Monday Musings ~ May 18, 2026

~ Tails Around the Ranch ~ 71 Comments

Monday smileGood Monday morning greetings, peeps. Today’s smile pretty sums up what we’ll be dealing with this week. After experiencing 80+ degree temps last week, we are under another freeze watch in effect until tomorrow where the high may reach 49F (9.4C). Never let it be said the weather isn’t interesting in Colorado. The only downside to it are the dreary grey skies that resemble thick soup. In the immortal words of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow who wrote in a poem 1842, “Into each life some rain must fall.” But in the parched West, we’ll enjoy it while we can.

Wishing you a Happy Monday.

Live, love, bark! 🐾

Monday Musings ~ May 11, 2026

~ Tails Around the Ranch ~ 62 Comments

We hope all you upright and pet moms had a lovely Mother’s Day. Wilson said our family BBQ was a huge success, in fact, he’s started tracking for the next family get together. Notice he had the dinner timer at the top of his smart watch although I would have expected him to rank the squirrel finder higher.

Monday smile

Here’s hoping your week tracks beautifully. Happy Monday.

Live, love, bark! 🐾

Monday Musings ~ May 4, 2026

~ Tails Around the Ranch ~ 71 Comments

Monday smile

And so the ongoing battle between the 80 lb. quilt continues. I swear this dog rather enjoys ‘busting a move.’ On top of me.

Here’s hoping all your moves this week are pawsome. Happy Monday.

Live, love, bark! 🐾

Monday Musings ~ April 27, 2026

~ Tails Around the Ranch ~ 67 Comments

Monday smileWilson has found a new treat that he likes. Although he would rather it would have been an apple slice from the charcuterie board leftovers, he was more than game to try a slice of cucumber. What treats do your dogs like?

Wilson

Whatever snack you prefer, we hope it adds to a ‘pawf-fect’ Monday for you.

Live, love, bark! 🐾

Monday Musings ~ April 6, 2026

~ Tails Around the Ranch ~ 58 Comments

We hope your holiday weekend was ‘pawsome.’ Anyone who owns a pet knows the drill when it comes to taking care of the water bowl. All I can say, is it’s a good thing the ‘other’ bowls all have lids.

Monday smile

We hope your water bowl (as well as the week) remain clean and fresh. Happy Monday!

Live, love, bark! 🐾

11th Annual Purple Day for Epilepsy

~ Tails Around the Ranch ~ 54 Comments

We’ve been busy driving back and forth to my Dad’s to get him settled in his new senior independent living facility and preparing his house for sale and won’t be posting the rest of this week. It’s been very hectic for me, but we continue to be very committed to supporting a cause that’s near and dear to my heart-canine epilepsy awareness. Which leads us to happily post our support for this year’s Purple Day for Epilepsy as hosted by the FiveSibes.

Purple Day

Even though my beloved Ninja Angel Elsa, earned her wings last year, we are once again participating in the annual Purple Day for Epilepsy Blog hop. Elsa was diagnosed with idiopathic epilepsy shortly after I adopted her. It was through their blog hops promoted by Dorothy Wills Raftery, the award winning author and epilepsy ambassador, along with co-hosts “Ruby the Therapy Dog, Knotty Toys For Good Dogs and Gibbs-erish Making Sense of Canine Epilepsy” (all can be found on Facebook), all of whom contributed valuable information that helped me provide Elsa with a good life. We will always be grateful for all the info that has been (and continues to be) shared over the years on their respective blogs and on their Facebook pages about canine epilepsy. I continue to remain ever so grateful for their help and all the information and resources that they shared about epilepsy over the years. Please visit the Purple Day website for additional information about epilepsy.

Elsa, epilepsyElsa was living proof that dogs who were diagnosed with this condition were still able to live relatively normal and happy lives so it’s only natural that Wilson wanted to participate in memory of his little sister by wearing her purple bandana.

Wilson - Purple Day

Please check out the Purple Day blog hop post at the FiveSibes link. The more awareness is raised, the better we can support those who suffer from this condition.

Purple Day

Live, love, bark! 🐾

Monday Musings ~ February 23, 2026

~ Tails Around the Ranch ~ 68 Comments

National Dog Biscuit DayHappy Monday. Today is Wilson’s favorite day. Not because it’s Monday but because it’s International Dog Biscuit Appreciation Day (also known as National Dog Biscuit Day). Woof, woof! What’s the story behind this special day? We did some digging and hope you enjoy the back story. Plus, in honor of the House Pony’s favorite day, we’re sharing a few recipes from our dog treat cookbook that you can make for your own dog’s favorite day.

So here’s what I discovered about how dog treats came to be a billion dollar business. I learned that the term “dog’s bread” had been around since Roman times. It was frequently labeled “bad bran bread,” with the term being associated  with treating people poorly. 

Back in early 1800’s England, dog biscuits began to show up that resembled what we are more familiar with now. Made with vegetables, grains, and bran, the mixture was baked together and sold as a treat, with claims made that they would improve a dog’s  coat and skin. 

The first mass-produced dog biscuit was created by American, James Spratt in London when he began manufacturing his “Meat Fibrine Dog Cake” around 1860. Ingredients were wheat meal, vegetables, beetroot, and meat. 

These “dog cakes” were originally marketed to the English gentry for their sporting dogs. Spratt’s Meat Fibrine Dog Cakes began to show up in the U.S. in 1881, and were considered a luxury item and were marketed at dog shows. They appeared on the cover of the first journal of the American Kennel Club in 1889. Spratt’s Patent, Ltd. also supplied army dogs with hundreds of millions of the biscuits during WWI. 

Not to be outdone, American F. H. Bennett began to compete against Spratt by making the first bone-shaped dog biscuit, known as “Milk Bone.”

A fascinating side fact that I learned was that a box of Milk-Bone treats made an appearance in the 1924 silent film The Tomboy, and later was the basis for a line from the TV sitcom Cheers, spoken by the character Norm, who was played by George Wendt. “It’s a dog-eat-dog world and I’m wearing Milk-Bone underwear.”

So in honor of the Floof’s favorite day, here are two recipes from our treat making cookbook that you can make for your dog’s favorite day. Enjoy!

Peanut Butter & Pumpkin Dog Treats (Source-Maryland SPCA)

Prep time: 25 min. Cook time: 40 min.

Ingredients:

  • 2 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
  • 2 eggs
  • 1/2 cup canned pumpkin (whole pumpkin only, not pumpkin pie filling)
  • 2 TBS peanut butter (make sure your peanut butter doesn’t contain any Xylitol or other artificial sweeteners)
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon (I use much less-1/8 tsp as not all dogs like the taste of cinnamon)

Directions:

  • Preheat oven to 350ºF (175ºC).
  • Mix together flour, eggs, pumpkin, peanut butter, salt, & cinnamon in bowl. Add water as needed to make dough workable but keep it fairly dry and stiff. Roll out to 1/2 inch thick. Cut into 1/2″ pieces or use cookie cutters.
  • Bake in preheated oven until hard, about 40 minutes.
  • Enjoy 🐾

Peter Peter, Punkin Eater Treats *

  • 2 cups whole wheat flour (or another if your pup has wheat sensitivities. We  experimented and use coconut flour because we were out of whole wheat-it was quite yummy but very difficult to use cookie cutters with the coconut flour which made it rather crumbly)
  • 1 cup oats
  • 1/4 cup peanut butter
  • 1/3 cup plain pumpkin
  • 1 cup water (I substituted The Honest Kitchen’s Bone Broth well…because I tend to tinker with recipes and in this case, and it was well received) by my official taster, Sam.

*We blogged this recipe way back when in October 2016. Original post can be seen here.

Mix all ingredients until well combined. Press into a ball, wrap in plastic and refrigerate for a few hours or overnight. Lightly flour surface and roll dough out to about 1/2″ thick. Use cookie cutters or a small glass to cut out the treats. Bake at 250º for 25-30 minutes and allow to cool before serving. This recipe received the 4-paw seal of approval. 🐾🐾  Nom, nom!

And even though it’s National Dog Biscuit Day, it’s still a Monday, which means we start the week out with a smile or two. The first is in honor of the historic win by Team USA in yesterday’s gold medal men’s hockey, overtime win on the exact day 46 years ago when the upstart US team beat the Soviet Union back in 1980.

Snoopy-hockey

Because we know the East Coast from Maryland to Maine is being hit with more severe winter weather, we hope they will appreciate today’s smile. Stay safe, warm and be comforted with the fact that Spring officially arrives in 25 days. Hang in there.

Winter

Live, love, bark! 🐾